"Father!" He called, bounding after a much larger lion. "Where are you going? Can I come?" He pawed his father's leg happily, that signature grin on his face.
"No, son, you may not," his father's deep, rumbling voice answered. The grin on Ragnar's face slipped away.
"Why not?" He said, sitting down on his haunches and looking up at the huge beast of a lion.
"It's time I left and time you learned to be a true lion," He said, a glaring, almost cruel look on his face.
"W-what? You're n-not coming back?"
"No."
"Please don't leave me!" He said, standing as his father turned his back to go. Tears began to fill his eyes and blurred his vision.
"I will leave if I want, Ragnar!" The Beast whirled around and roared in his face. "A lion is strong and does not show weakness!"
Ragnar stood and looked his father in the eye, his own golden ones still misty.
"Yes, sir."
Without looking back, Ragnar's father turned and ran from the forest. The young cub watched until he could no longer see him, and he let one last tear escape.
Ragnar woke with a start, breathing heavy. Momentarily confused, he looked around, not knowing where he was. He soon realized he was in the hollow tree and Anock was gone. He sat up on his haunches, his mane stuck up in different directions. He quickly ran a paw over his head, just barely feeling the scar there. He sighed, remembering the dream. It had been real once. It was long ago, so he just let it pass.
The large lion stretched and then lay down again, front paws crossed in front of him. He supposed he would wait for Anock to return.